OAN Staff Abril Elfi
7:34 PM – Thursday, August 21, 2025
An Atlanta judge recently delivered a “guilty” verdict for a man charged with murdering a police officer. However, the defendant was in fact found “not guilty” on all counts by the jury in the case — prompting confusion and mockery.
Judge Henry M. Newkirk mistakenly delivered a devastating “guilty” verdict in the murder trial of Alton Oliver, who was accused of fatally shooting off-duty Fulton County Deputy James Thomas.
“We, the jury, find the defendant guilty as to all six counts of the bill of indictment. Sheriff, will you please hand this to the state’s counsel and pass it over to–” Newkirk told the court before he was interrupted by several baffled jurors who had just decided the verdict.
In a courtroom video, jurors can be heard expressing confusion after the verdict is read.
“Didn’t I say ‘not’?” the judge asked.
“No,” multiple people in the courtroom responded.
“Sorry,” Newkirk said. “We, the jury, find the defendant not guilty.”
In December 2022, Oliver, 26, was heading home from work at 4:30 a.m. local time when Thomas, who was off duty and in his personal vehicle, approached him three times while in his car, aggressively offering him a ride home before eventually demanding sex.
When Thomas turned around for a third time, Oliver says he “got spooked” and opened fire, according to Fox 5 Atlanta.
The defense successfully argued that the shooting was self-defense.
Oliver was acquitted on six counts — including murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, first-degree criminal damage to property, and possession of a firearm while committing a crime.
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